After all, the rich get richer and the poor get children. Which is okay so long as lots of them starve in infancy. - John Brunner

"There was exactly one power base available to sustain the old style of government," Nick grunted. "Organized crime."
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The book has one of the scariest mise-en-scènes in all of science fiction: a world that is a smothering, riotous tangle of human arms and limbs. Stand on Zanzibar is an information overload on topics that sensible people would never want to learn about. Even the characters fear what the book’s world is direly telling them: as the brightest among them rather pitifully remarks, “Whatever happens in present circumstances there’s going to be trouble.” Their world is a kaleidoscope of whatever. Its darkly troubled whateverness oozes from its walls with lysergic intensity.

Independence has limits. But dependence has, too. I want to set some for myself, that’s all.